Burn It Away
by Jirachi At Sundown
Summary: Ed, a little kid of 13, has already managed to figure out how to use Flame Alchemy. Of course Roy panics, and they get into an argument. What they didn't know however, was that someone was listening, and they had no good intentions in mind. Parental!RoyEd, T for Torture! (Cover Drawn By Me)
1. Chapter 1

Ed was rather proud of himself. That much was obvious as the little boy of 13 waltzed down the hallway with a big childish grin on his face. After watching Mustang's Flame Alchemy for less than a year, he managed to figure out how it worked. The arrays on his gloves rearranged the molecules in the air to concentrate a ton of oxygen in one place, and by snapping his fingers, Mustang's ignition gloves created the spark that started fires. Simple, really.

Ed snickered, thinking about how long it probably had taken for Mustang to figure it out. Here he was, a 13 year old kid, capable of learning what a grown man could in years, in less than half the time!

He made it to Mustang's office, and he swiftly kicked it open, announcing his arrival. Few people looked up, all of them having gotten used to his sudden entrances by that point.

"Ah, Fullmetal, I didn't realize that they were serving shrimp today," The Colonel said easily, not bothering to look up from his paperwork.

Ed ignored the jab at his height, instead choosing to walk up to the Colonel's desk, smirking proudly. "Well, _Flame_ , it seems that this _shrimp_ has managed to copy your fire."

This caught the attention of the other soldiers, all of them curious as to why the midget hadn't blown up yet. Roy however was more curious as to what the kid meant by "copy his fires".

Hawkeye eyed them carefully as she dropped off more paperwork for the others. She wasn't getting a good feeling from this. "And what do you mean by that?" Mustang asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ed merely grinned, slipping off his right glove, revealing the shining Automail. Mustang and Hawkeye managed to catch a glimpse of what looked like transmuted flint on his fake digits. Though what caught them off guard was the transmutation circle on the back of his hand.

It was _Flame Alchemy._

Mustang's eyes widened in shock, and Hawkeye froze in her place as the boy easily activated the circle, and snapped his fingers, creating a burning fire flickering above his Automail hand.

Mustang sat there in complete and utter horror and he watched the flames eventually flicker out after a couple seconds.

After a moment of silence, Havoc let out an impressed whistle. "Wow Chief, managed to figure it out that fast?

"It's only been about a year since he saw the Colonel first use Flame Alchemy, must've figured it out way faster than Mustang." Breda chirped, flashing the kid a grin.

Ed smiled in return, his chest filling with pride. "Yup, it's not that hard, really." He turned his golden gaze back to the Colonel. "Really, Flame Alchemy's practically child's play once you figure out how it works, after seeing your _oh so mighty_ flames a few times, it was just a matter of practical practice-"

He was abruptly cut off by a hand grabbing a fistful of his shirt, shoving him against the wall. Ed snapped his mouth shut, golden eyes as wide as saucers as he was met with the sight of matching obsidian black eyes glaring at him fiercely. "Where the _hell_ did you learn that?"

"B-Boss!" Havoc practically yelled, standing up immediately to approach them. Mustang ignored the Second Lieutenant, instead choosing to growl venomously at his subordinates, a silent warning to stay back.

Ed gaped at the Colonel in disbelief, stammering, "I-I didn't-"

"Tell me!" The grip on his shirt tightened and Mustang pressed his forearm up against the boy's throat. "Where. Did. You. Find. Out?"

Edward choked a bit, instinctively reaching up to try easing the pressure off his throat a bit. "I le-earned it by m-myself-"

The Colonel dropped him, and Ed stumbled a bit, choking and gagging at the sudden intake of air. That was short-lived however, as he felt something hit him right across the face, whipping his head to the side and making him stumble back slightly.

There was a long silence as Hawkeye stared at the Colonel wide eyed, and Havoc and Breda looking mortified. Falman was staring in disbelief, and Fuery looked horrified.

Ed went ridged, still staring at that one spot on the floor. There was a faint sting on his cheek, and carefully, he reached up to press the cool metal of Automail against it as if to check if that actually happened.

The sudden sharp stings and burns that resulted confirmed it. Mustang had slapped him, hard, and it _hurt..._

Edward slowly looked up at Mustang, eyes wide and confused. The man growled, and said quietly, "Don't you ever dare try Flame Alchemy again, got that?"

Ed could hear the underlying threat laced into Mustang's words, and he blinked in shock. He saw no regret in those furious black eyes.

It _hurts..._

 _Why does it hurt?_

Ed pursed his lips, and dropping his hand away from his now red face, he carefully took a shaky breath. It's because somewhere deep inside, he wanted Mustang to be proud of him.

 _Like a father, like how Hohenheim failed to. Just a little praise was apparently too much to ask for._

 _And it really hurts._

Ed gritted his teeth, putting on his well worn mask again. "F-fine! Who needs your shitty Flame Alchemy anyway?! It's useless in the rain anyhow!" With that, he turned on his heel, and marched out of the office, trying to hid the tears that were threatening to escape.

 _It hurts, why...?_

 _I just wanted a dad to praise me, even just a little. Though I suppose a failure like me would never be able to have it._

...o0o...

Hawkeye swore she saw the kid tear up a little, and that practically tore her heart to shreds. Watching the boy turn around and rush away seemed to rub salt and lemon juice in the wounds.

She turned to Roy, frowning disapprovingly. " _Sir_!"

Roy seemed to snap out of it, blinking at the door in slight confusion. He looked over at his subordinates, who were each giving him disgusted looks.

That's when his actions caught up with him. He could feel his gut twisting as that realization slammed into him like a truck.

He had _slapped_ Fullmetal.

 _Holy shit I hit a subordinate._

"Boss, I know you're agitated that a little kid managed to steal your thunder, but that was low." Havoc muttered, sending his superior officer a glare.

"I'm more surprised he actually struck out against a fellow officer..." Fuery said quietly, looking away.

"And against Ed, of all people."

"Just cause the kid wanted to show off a little?"

"Well, the Chief _is_ only 13..."

"Sir," Hawkeye said, walking up to him. Roy swore he could feel her piercing gaze stab through him. "I would like to speak with you in private."

Mustang wasn't given anytime to comment as she dragged him away from the office, and into another, empty one. If any higher-ups saw the grown man being pulled away by a very pissed looking Lieutenant, they didn't comment.

She swiftly shut the door behind her, and turned to face her partner. "Sir, I do know you're upset Edward, somehow, managed to figure out how to use Flame Alchemy, but lashing out at him was uncalled for."

Mustang paused, pursing his lips. Hawkeye remained silent, the look she was giving him demanding an answer.

He truly did regret that. He really did. He was just too blinded by the shock and anger to really comprehend it all until it was too late.

That hurt and confused look on that kid's face seemed to bury itself deep into his mind, and just seeing it made his heart nearly explode with guilt.

 _He had hurt him._

 _Both physically and emotionally..._

Eventually letting out a sigh, Roy muttered, "I know, I just panicked... I didn't mean it."

Hawkeye paused, eyeing him carefully. _He seems to be genuine about it..._ "Colonel..."

"I'm just shocked at how fast he managed to figure it out just by watching me." That caught her off guard. He learned just by watching? No research notes?

 _Really, Flame Alchemy's practically child's play once you figure out how it works, after seeing your oh so mighty flames a few times, it was just a matter of practical practice._

"That kid is too smart for his own good." Mustang sighed, shaking his head. "That's going to be his downfall someday."

Riza stood there, frowning a bit, "You should apologize to them."

Roy gave her a baffled look, "Them?" He echoed curiously.

"Both Edward, and the team," she clarified, narrowing her eyes. "You didn't quite set the ideal example for them to follow."

Mustang winced slightly, recalling their comments.

 _That was low..._

 _He struck out against a fellow officer..._

 _Against Ed of all people..._

 _The Chief is only thirteen..._

 _That was uncalled for..._

Mustang nodded in understanding. "I will..."

...o0o...

Damn it why did his cheek feel like it was on fire?!

Ed rubbed his now red cheek in discomfort, scowling. It hurt worse than a punch would, what the hell?

 _Maybe it's because of the one who inflicted it._

Edward growled quietly to himself, shoving away his inner self. He didn't want to think about it.

He stopped, pausing to quickly compose himself. "C'mon Fullmetal," he muttered quietly to himself, "we need ya here while Edward Elric takes a break."

He took a deep breath, and slowly exhaling, he let his prosthetic hand drop to his side. He couldn't let these people see him weak.

 _In the military, if you showed weakness, they'd eat you alive. Just like a bunch of dogs._

 _Fullmetal_ looked up, straightening his posture and continued walking. No one would know how he felt.

He ambled up to the door, about to leave to head towards the library where Al was, that is until he heard someone call, "Major Elric!"

Edward sighed in frustration, turning to find himself face-to-face with a man who seemed to be late thirties to early forties, of average height, a square chin with a slight stubble, with graying black hair, and narrow, dark blue eyes. Edward raised an eyebrow, prompting the man to continue, "Major Elric, I-"

"Don't call me that." Ed cut him off, frowning a bit in distaste. Seeing the man's confused look, Ed clarified, "I'm just a State Alchemist, I'm not an official Major. Just Edward or Fullmetal would be fine."

"Ah, right, Edward," He corrected himself, nodding all too readily. "I am Lieutenant Colonel Kevin Ollivander, and I was hoping you'd be interested in transferring under me?"

 _Ah, so he's one of those guys_. Ed immediately drones him out, and continued walking. Following the kid, the Lieutenant Colonel went on to describe all the _oh so wonderful benefits_ the kid would get from transferring, and blah blah blah and all that crap.

Truth was, Edward couldn't transfer. As much of an asshole Mustang could be, he and his brother needed him. The man was high up in rank, and he knew their secret of what happened that night. Why Ed was in the military to begin with. They couldn't transfer without risking someone else finding out about Al. He wouldn't risk his baby brother for something as petty as a promotion.

Ollivander suddenly turned and half out his hand towards Ed, smiling a bit too widely for comfort. "So, do you agree?"

"No." Ed deadpanned immediately, brushing past him. Ollivander blinked, staring at the empty space for a moment before turning to ash after the young Alchemist.

"But-"

"No."

"Edward I-"

"I said no."

"Then tell me the secrets of Flame Alchemy!"

Edward froze. Flame Alchemy? Is that what this rat bastard was after this whole time? He turned and gave Ollivander a slight glare. "How the hell would I know?"

Ollivander's bright smile slowly dripped into a sinister smirk. "Now now, you didn't stop to think that anyone would listen into your little conversation with the Flame Alchemist earlier, now did you?"

The boy froze, eyes wide. This man eavesdropped on them?! So that means... Ed grits his teeth, about to clap his hands to perform a quick transmutation, when a sudden shadow loomed over him from behind. Startled, Ed was about to turn around to see his other opponent when something heavy suddenly slammed into the back of his head. The boy collapsed onto the hard ground, head spinning as black spots began to swarm into his vision.

Just before he blacked out, Ed could see Ollivander giving him a grin, blues eyes bright and dangerous, like alchemical light...

"Nighty night, _Fullmetal Alchemist_."

Everything faded to black.

...o0o...

 **A/N: Just a little idea I had, I really wanna make this a multi-chapter story, BUT WHY DO I KEEP POSTING NEW STORIES AND NOT UPDATING UGH! Uh yeah, I see fics all the time where Flame Alchemy is handled carelessly and Roy and Riza are all like "Oh yeah sure go ahead it's not like we care! It's not like Roy literally burned Riza's back to ensure that nobody else could learn Flame Alchemy!" Like that bothers me, so freaking much. Same for the whole "Major Elric" thing, cause like, Ed's not an official Major, his title as a State Alchemist just happens to have a rank equivalent to Major. So I'm sticking with Fullmetal or something. Yeah, does anyone want me to continue? Y'all would get to see more of my crappy writing and crappy plot skills in action! But yeah, please review, I live off of them.**


	2. Chapter 2

To say the least, the team certainly weren't too happy with him when he returned. They glared, disappointed scowls on their faces, and Mustang knew exactly why. He took a shaky breath, preparing himself for what was to come. "Men, I apologize for my outburst earlier, it was completely out of line and unprofessional of me." He said clearly, looking up and waiting for the inevitable.

 _It's your fault!_

 _You hurt a kid, Mustang!_

 _You disgust me!_

"We understand."

...What.

Roy blinked in surprise, staring at Fuery, who had, surprisingly, been the first to speak up. "We understand," he repeated, eyes set on the Colonel.

He was speechless. Just like that? He was forgiven? How?

"We understand that Flame Alchemy is dangerous, sir," Falman explained, as if reading his thoughts, "We know you just panicked."

"But," Breda piped up, drawing the man's eyes towards him. "It isn't us who you have to apologize to."

 _That much, I know._

"You need to go find Ed, Boss." Havoc said, giving him a tired glance. The Second Lieutenant frowned a bit, recalling the event that had occurred not even 15 minutes ago. "The Chief looked..." he trailed off, noticing the guilt swimming behind onyx eyes.

Mustang nodded, trying to keep an impassive face. Is was a little difficult considering the fact he had brick of guilt weighing him down. He really shouldn't have lost it. He knew that.

 _And yet you did._

"I know, Havoc, I plan on talking with Fullmetal soon."

...o0o...

" _We'll have to tell him."_

 _Roy froze on the spot, staring at Hawkeye in disbelief. Did she just-?!_

" _Sir, I don't want to just as much as you do." She said, meeting his eyes. She practically read him like a book. Her sherry colored irises glimmered in the lights, and he noticed the swirls of complex emotions in those eyes. She was hesitant..._

 _Riza bit her lip, frowning slightly, "I promised that there would be no more Flame Alchemists, but Edward..."_

" _We can trust him," Roy finished, nodding in agreement. "He has to know in order to understand why." The brat may be annoying, but he had a good heart. That, he was certain of._

 _That 'kid' had sold his soul to the military, knowing full well the consequences, and yet promised to never take a human life. He practically ripped off his own arm to save his little brother. He was a loyal, kind, and strong boy, one whom Roy, who'd never admit it to his face, actually admired._

 _That kid was definitely trustworthy, and if anyone said he wasn't, Roy would eat his own damn hat._

...o0o...

 _WHERE THE FRICK IS EDWARD ELRIC?!_

Mustang growled in frustration as he impatiently tapped his pen against his desk, glaring at the door to the office.

It had been a week since the incident.

A _week._

With absolutely no sign of Edward. The kid wasn't at the library, cafeteria, dorms, or even at the freaking supermarket, it was as if he had vanished.

At first, Roy had thought Edward had simply run off to the park or something to cool off, but the next day, he was startled to receive a call from the boy's younger brother, Alphonse, asking him where his brother was.

7 days went by with no sign of the kid.

7 days without knowing what happened.

7 days of constant searching, only to be dragged back to the damn paperwork.

 _7\. Days._

At this point, Mustang wondered briefly if they'd end up finding Fullmetal's rotting corpse in a ditch somewhere-

 _No. Don't think like that! Edward can't be dead, the brat's too stubborn to get killed like that!_

But a week. A lot can happen in a week. Roy needed to find his subordinate, and that was final. He wanted to find him himself. He wanted to figure out what the hell happened, but he couldn't.

Because of the fucking _rain_. " _You're of no use in the rain, Colonel, we'll search. Stay here and finish your paperwork."_ Hawkeye really knew how to hammer it in. He hated it. He hated being useless.

Mustang absolutely loathed it. Because it hurt. It was true. He was indeed useless. His subordinate could've been kidnapped and could be getting tortured right now, and here he is, unable to do anything about it.

The pitter patter of raindrops against the window did nothing to lighten his mood. He wasn't even paying attention to what he was signing at this point, all his thoughts focused on the missing Alchemist.

 _What is he doing right now?_

 _How is he doing?_

 _Is he alive?_

 _What if he's... dea-_

Roy stopped himself from finishing that thought. That was the second time in five minutes. Did he really doubt the strength of that kid?

No, no he didn't. He admired his strength. But that didn't stop him from worrying.

 _Is he eating right?_

 _Is he getting enough sleep?_

He huffed, putting down his pen in favor of rubbing his temples. _Great Mustang, now you're acting like a dad, way to go, you're not even thirty yet..._

Roy shook his head in disbelief. One week has already taken it's toll on him. He could only wonder what's going on with his youngest subordinate, and it drove him crazy to not know.

He usually kept tabs on them, having some informants follow the Elrics around and keep him updated on their whereabouts. He made sure they were safe. But now he couldn't do that, seeing as the eldest Elric just dropped off the map with no trace.

Well now he understood why Ed freaked when Al 'went missing' for 6 hours to go visit the Hughes'.

Every worst case scenario flooded his mind, the constant worrying, the pounding in his skull, that weird achey feeling in his chest... _Is this the instinct Edward told me about? Probably. Maybe I shouldn't tease him so much when he freaks over Al again._

With that, Roy went back to signing paperwork, hoping he could get out of there and find the kid soon.

 _Before anything bad happens._

...o0o...

Riza Hawkeye ran a hand through her loose hair, sighing as she stared down at her cup tea. It was supposed to help with insomnia, if she remembered right. When was the last time she had gotten a full 9 hours of sleep? Who knows...

She sat quietly in her small apartment, watching as Black Hayate slept away on the couch, practically dead to the world.

The Shiba Inu had been as busy as she was, helping out the team as they searched for their missing Alchemist.

Nonstop, for seven days. Honestly, she felt exhausted. She should've been getting some sleep considering it was 1:06 AM.

But she couldn't. The sniper couldn't sleep.

Not when the nightmares came.

One would think that the strict, emotionless Lieutenant they saw during that day couldn't have nightmares. That she wouldn't be woken up in the middle of the night by her own screams.

Oh how wrong they were. She could still feel the blazing heat of the desert, the full ache in her shoulder from shooting a bit too much, and she could vividly see the Ishvalans falling to the Hawk's Eye.

Blood shooting out from the bullet hole, soaking their clothes, dirtying the ground. Indirectly covering her own hands in blood. It was horrifying, cold blooded murder.

She desperately hoped Edward did not meet a similar fate in the week he's been gone.

...o0o...

Alphonse was worried.

No, that was the understatement of the century. The twelve year old was practically having a panic attack each day, nervously waiting next to the phone in hopes someone could call it, saying the three words he wanted to hear, "We've found him."

It hasn't come as of yet, but it will. Al had hope. He believed in his older brother, he knew Ed wouldn't go down so easily. After all, Ed had been there his whole life. He couldn't just be gone like that.

His only family was missing, just... missing. Not there. Al felt like crying from the loneliness. It hurt. It hurt to be alone. He wanted to cry so bad, but he couldn't. Not with this metal body. He was alone, unable to cry, eat, sleep, nothing.

After all they've been through, though, Al had to stay strong. He had to keep moving forward. He wouldn't say anything, he had to make sure they kept their attention on finding Ed.

So he quietly suffered alone, in hopes the he'd be able to see his brother again.

...o0o...

 **A/N: Yay! I'm back with more crappily written, ultra short chapters! I swear I wanted to make it longer. Haha, sorry guys, but no Ed in this one, lol! If y'all want updates and stuff on what I'm doing and statuses and stuff, check my profile, I sometimes update the story statuses every few days or so. BUT HEY AT LEAST I GOT IT OUT BEFORE A WEEK WAS OVER!**

 **Also, HOLY MOTHERFISHING CARP LIKE, 9 REVIEWS ON THE FIRST CHAPTER?! Y'all gonna make me cry, I swear.**

 **I'll try to keep this AN short since I personally don't like long ANs, but to answer some questions that may pop up in the future, yes, Kevin Ollivander is an OC, as are any other characters that are with him, he is not a canon character. This is going to be Brotherhood/Manga based with hints of the first chunk of 2003, or it may be an AU, even. I'm hoping to make this story AT LEAST 10 chapters long, 30 at most.**

 **Thanks for reading this far, how did you do it? How did you survive the horrific writing?** _ **HOW**_


	3. Chapter 3

Ed swore he had a headache the size of Drachma and Xing _combined._ It felt as if hundred of mini-Ed's were hammering pickaxes into his skull, and it hurt more than the annoying Colonel's stupid voice.

He couldn't open his eyes. He was too tired, and his whole body ached. _What happened...?_

 _Ah yeah... Lieutenant Colonel Ollivander wanted me to transfer... and... when I didn't, he... oh._

Oh. Just oh. One would've thought the kid would've been panicking or even terrified at the thought of being kidnapped, but really, this wasn't the first time he'd been kidnapped. At that point, he was just exasperated at these idiot's attempts to kidnap the Fullmetal Alchemist. He normally managed to escape within an hour or so, or the military police would've arrived by then.

 _At least Ollivander was smart enough to remove the Automail_ , Ed thought to himself, taking note of the lack of weight where his right arm and left leg should've been. Though whenever that happened, his limbs were sometimes just laying in the corner or on a table in the same room, if the kidnapper was stupid enough.

He didn't like the idea of being kidnapped, it was troublesome, and not to mention annoying. Slowly, Ed forced his eyes to open, but he still felt half-dead at that point, feeling as if his mere eyelashes were ten pounds each.

Everything was blurry, but he could make out a dark grey blob below, which he assumed was the floor. There was a glowing orange thing off to the left, with rusty reds around it, and Ed guessed that to be a fireplace. He was up against the wall with his only remaining arm wrenched above his head, and after twisting it around a bit, he could conclude that it was tied up with what felt like a rough rope. Despite the fireplace being there, it was pretty cold, considering he had been stripped of his coat, jacket, and boots. Although there _was_ something warm dripping down his face...

 _Wait... is that blood...? That explains the headache..._

He blinked a bit, trying to clear up his vision. It didn't help whatsoever, and it confused him a bit, _why can't I see properly?_

Frowning, the boy shook his head, but that only served to make his headache even worse. _Good going Ed..._

He almost missed the footsteps that were approaching him. He looked up, squinting to see two bright blue dots on a mass of cream, gray, and black. "Ah, I see you're awake," the blob said.

 _Oh wait... that's... what's his name? Ah yeah, Ollivander_... Ed realized, immediately sending the Lieutenant Colonel a glare. Or at least the best one he could manage when he couldn't see all that well.

"Ah, ah, ah," Ollivander the Blob said, kneeling down in front of the Alchemist as if he were lightly scolding a naughty child. It grated on Ed's nerves so damn much. "Don't give me that look, Fullmetal." Now a bit closer, Ed could faintly see he was smirking at him. _Just what does he want?!_

Patting Edward on the head as if he was a little kid, Ollivander simply said, "Now, I'm going to tell you once more, tell me the secrets to Flame Alchemy."

Ed spat in his face. " _Go to hell_." He growled, letting the light from the fire reflect on his golden irises, making them seem like molten lava.

Ollivander froze, staring at the kid in disbelief. His smirk slowly dropped into a scowl accompanied by a glare, as he wiped off the spit. "I see how it is, then."

With that, h _e punched_ the kid in the gut.

The air was violently knocked out of his lungs, and Ed immediately started coughing and gasping, only for Ollivander to deliver another blow.

Ed kicked and yelled, thrashing against his restraints, which only resulted in the skin on his wrist getting rubbed raw against the rough texture of the rope, letting blood drip down in arm.

The hits hurt. The bruises left ached. It all left him sore.

 _Oh, he's going to get it when I get out of here_ , Ed thought, internally grinning. _He's really gonna get it._

...o0o...

Ed assumed about three days had passed since he was dragged there. Though he couldn't really tell. There were no windows, and by that point it didn't even matter.

There was a cloth tied tightly around his head, blinding his completely. He was stuck in the dark, and he hated it. He couldn't see. He couldn't tell where he'd get hit, so he couldn't brace himself properly.

It was dark. Black. Empty.

He hated it.

He hated not being able to see, to _know_ what's happening with ease.

He had tried escaping by the second day, having scratched a circle into the wall with his nails, which had hurt a _lot_ , by the way. He managed to free himself from the rope, but the issue was he couldn't _walk._ He only had one leg, so that left him lost. He tried crawling out of the, now confirmed to be a basement, to freedom.

That plan was completely busted however, when Ollivander chose that _exact_ moment to come downstairs. Oh how Ed hated his luck.

He was quickly dragged back to where he was before, kicking and yelling and trying to get a punch in.

 _Until Ollivander decided to nail his arm to the wall._

There were now three long, neat nails embedded into the boy's arm and the wall it was pinned to, one in his hand, one in his forearm, and one in his bicep, and _holy hell it hurt_. Any movement sent sharp flares of pain up and down his arm and through his body, his nerves felt like they were on fire.

After a few hours of trying not to scream from merely trying to twitch a finger, Ollivander came down again.

He tried learning more about Flame Alchemy once more. Ed, once more, refused.

He ended up with a broken rib, several bruises, and a split lip.

On the third day, yesterday, during Ollivander's little interrogation, he had brought a little _toy_ with him.

A knife.

A simple, small, sharp kitchen knife, dripping with what looked like water.

 _It wasn't water_.

The Lieutenant Colonel has simply made small cuts on his face, torso, leg, and arm. That last one hurt more than he liked to admit. They were small, but they hurt as if he had gotten stabbed twelve times each then melted shut with lava.

" _A little drug I made_." Ollivander had said proudly, admiring the bloodied knife with sick satisfaction, " _It just amplifies the pain in a wound tenfold."_

 _More like a thousand_ , Ed thought bitterly.

The cutting had continued, until Ed eventually bit him.

Hard.

Ollivander had screamed, and Ed had spat out a chunk of blood and flesh he had bitten off. The kid ended up blindfolded, because, " _I cant gag you, I need you to talk when you tell me about Flame Alchemy_."

' _When'. Not 'If'._

That man sure was confident, huh?

 _Mustang, come on, hurry up with the rescue party already_!

He didn't want to admit it, but this time around he needed help. He was blindfolded, missing two limbs, one of his remaining ones was technically useless, and that broken rib was making it harder to breathe.

 _Please... help..._

...o0o...

It was now the fourth day, and the concussion Ed had received four days ago was practically killing him. His head pounded, his brain felt like exploding, he couldn't breathe...

"Hm, you seem to be getting dirty."

Since when had _he_ gotten here? Ed felt a hand grab a handful of his now loose and greasy hair, he lost the hair tie a while ago.

There was a small hum coming from the man, who eventually let go of the kid's hair, and got up.

Ed strained his ears, hearing Ollivander shuffle around the basement a bit. He heard something drop to the floor, and get dragged over to him.

"You're going to need a shower."

 _What the hell does that m_ -

A sudden burst of cold- no, _freezing_ water crashed against his sore skin, making him yelp in surprise. _Holy shit it's cold turn it off turn it off turn it off_ -

Ed immediately backed up against the wall as far as he could, as the spray of ice cold water came down on him, stinging his skin and making the pain in his head nearly unbearable.

He tried to scream. He tried to tell the man to stop. But all he got was a lungful of water.

He choked, coughing and trying to get away. He curled up, shaking, wanting to just melt into the wall.

The movements made the pain flare up in his arm, reminding him there were nailing in hi, making sure he couldn't get away.

After what felt like an eternity, but in reality was probably only ten minutes, Ollivander turned off the hose he had dragged down there, leaving Ed shivering, and dripping wet.

"Now that that's over with," Ollivander said with a grin, " _Tell me_ the secrets of Flame Alchemy."

A full minute passed filled with silence, the only sounds being of the dripping water, shaky breathing, coughing, and flickering of the fireplace.

He turned the hose back on.

...o0o...

 _I'm drowning..._

 _I can't breathe..._

 _I can't see..._

 _Help...!_

 _I'm dying...!_

 _Please... help me... dad..._

...o0o...

At this point, Ed had lost count of the days. It felt like months. Months of the freezing cold water, the cutting, the nails, it all _hurt_.

But for all he knew, it had only been a few hours. Or even just a week or two.

He didn't know.

He couldn't even feel his arm anymore. Or the Automail ports. He wondered if he had frostbite... kinda doubtful, but still a possibility.

Edward could barely breathe. Each breath hurt, sending sharp flares through his chest. He had barely eaten either, he'd get one meal every other day, although they only consisted of stale bread and, if he was lucky, some cold stew.

Damn, he loved stew, but he couldn't let Ollivander know that, otherwise he wouldn't get any more. He didn't drink any of the water provided, he got enough of that from the ' _showers_ '.

If he remembered right, he may get some stew today.

When he heard the footsteps coming, he knew to prepare himself for what was to come with that man. Likely cutting again, today.

 _It wasn't cutting._

...o0o...

No matter what they did, Ed silently swore to himself he wouldn't say anything about Flame Alchemy. He knew now why the Colonel had panicked, why he had said he shouldn't lean Flame Alchemy.

It was because he didn't want scumbags like this asshole to get their hands on it.

He knew that now, and so, he promised to never tell this bastard, no matter what he did.

But dang it was hard sometimes.

The 13 year old bit his lip in an attempt to not scream as he felt the burning hot blade press against his bloodied arm. He could literally feel the flesh _melt_ and the blood _boil_ , and _holy shit it was agonizing-_

"Come on Edward," Kevin Ollivander snarled, ripping the knife off of the kid's arm, peeling off some burnt flesh with it. " _Tell me_."

Ed was panting, shaking, near _whimpering_ at that point. _But he didn't say anything._ The burns were pure agony, and he knew with Flame Alchemy, this asswipe would be able to wreak terror among the citizens. Edward couldn't afford to have that happen.

The scent of his own boiling flesh made him gag, and almost even puke. Thank goodness he couldn't actually see them.

"Little brat," Ollivander growled out. It was clear he was losing patience. "If you don't want me to make your miserable little pathetic life a living hell, I suggest you _talk_."

Ed didn't even bother to comment on the 'little' part. It hurt too much to even try.

"Hell...?" He slurred, gulping a bit. "T-try your worst... bastard... it won't e'vn compare t'wha I've l'ready gone through..."

 _He should've kept his damn mouth shut._

...o0o...

 **A/N: First time trying to write torture, yayyy... it's bad I know. But hey, at least I'm somehow updating really fast, and I don't know how or why! I guess I'm just on a writing spree lately... which means it'll wear off eventually. Well crap, imma have to write as much as possible while it's still going strong! Also, about the "shower" thing, I noticed a lot of torture/kidnapping fics mention nothing about hygiene, like, people, they need to shower too!**

 **So yeah, please review and tell me how I did, I like torturing readers just as much as the characters.**

 **And no. Ed never got his stew.**


	4. Chapter 4

Kevin Ollivander huffed in amusement as he watched those idiots run around Amestris. It was entertaining to see them look for their precious little Alchemist, the very same same he had in his basement. He absolutely adored the way they slowly spiraled downwards, seeing them worry and panic.

It was _beautiful_.

While the brat still refused to tell him the secrets to Flame Alchemy, it was still fun to see how long it would take to get him to scream. Those bloodcurdling yells still echoed in his mind, making him smirk coldly. It was music to his ears!

Kevin adored the way a person's voice rose in pitch as they screamed and cried. He loved it, especially if it was the voice of a woman or young child.

It was mesmerizing to listen to. Other people who knew of this claimed he was 'insane'. _They were just too deaf to hear the beauty in it_ , he thought, nodding.

 _He couldn't wait to get ahold of Flame Alchemy, so he could hear more of those lovely shrieks._

Although, it was better when one's voice was filled with shocked betrayal, crumbling hope, or heart wrenching sadness. Some kind of emotion besides fear, it had a different ring to it than pain did.

 _He wondered if he could get the same sound from Fullmetal._

...o0o...

Ollivander could feel the giddy excitement build up in his chest as he walked down the hallway of his house, towards the bedrooms. In one hand, he had a small toolbox filled with wrenches, screwdrivers, screws, nails, and the like his father had gathered over the years. Kevin had found it in his attic, collecting dust.

 _It seems to finally be the time to use them_ , he thought happily. _No doubt, this'll make the pup scream._

He walked into his bedroom, third room down the hall on the right. He closed the door behind him, and quickly making sure the blinds were drawn on the windows, he knelt down next to his bed, taking out a piece of chalk from his pocket, and swiftly drew a transmutation circle.

Kevin activated it, and in no time, he had transmuted the floor into the trapdoor he always used to get to the basement.

It wasn't fancy or anything, seeing as Kevin wasn't a very good Alchemist, but it would do.

He climbed down into the basement, casually calling out, "Oh little Alchemist~!"

...o0o...

When Ed heard that voice accompanied by the heavy footsteps he'd grown used to hearing, he immediately dreaded what was to come.

Ollivander never sounded happy. Never, much less verbally announced his arrival.

So when he called out in a cheerful, sing-song voice, Ed knew something was wrong here. Very, _very_ horribly wrong.

He looked up to Ollivander's general direction when he heard something clatter to the ground, the sound so familiar...

Tools.

Just like the one's Winry used, whatever he had dropped to the ground sounded exactly like it. Metal tools.

He was not looking forward to this.

Ed tensed up as he heard the man walk over to him, kneeling down in front of the boy. "I'm sure you heard that," Ollivander purred, and Ed swore he could hear the guy smirk. "You should have a good idea as to what I'll do if you don't tell me about Flame Alchemy."

Yeah, he did know. Ed had a very good idea as to what he had in store, and he certainly wasn't liking it.

"If you don't want me to do it, then go ahead and tell me." Ollivander said, and Ed could feel his breath in his ear. _Then he's pretty close... close enough for me to..._

Ed kicked him in the crotch as hard as he could.

Kevin let out a high pitched shriek that couldn't be considered manly, as he immediately scooted away from the young State Alchemist.

"If you think I'll tell, then you're sorely mistaken," Ed growled, out, a hint of a grin playing across his face. He managed to cause his kidnapper pain. A ton of it, at that. Good. Totally worth whatever is to come.

 _It wasn't._

...o0o...

In hindsight, Ed figured he really shouldn't have kicked the guy, considering he now couldn't even move his leg anymore.

The bastard, after taking a couple minutes to recover a bit, had been quick to make use of his vast array of tools. Starting off by cutting the ligaments in Ed's leg.

He kind of expected that, if he were to be honest. But that didn't stop it from hurting as bad as it did, the cut itself stung at first, but slowly turned into what felt like acid running through his veins, before it went limp.

Soon after the guy had practically pounced on his Automail.

Now he was stuck in that damned basement, with no functioning limbs, pretty much bleeding to death.

Great. Fucking great.

He could feel screws from his Automail ports rattle and shift around every time he moved. The Lieutenant Colonel apparently had done a little research on Automail, and ended up loosening some screws and pulled out a few wires. That by itself practically set his whole body on fire. It didn't help that he tightened the metal plating in a few parts, practically crushing the bones the ports were drilled into.

There was a small puddle of blood forming beneath him, at least, that's what he thought it was. It would make sense, considering he felt something warm and sticky running down his side.

A lot of it at that...

That probably wasn't a good thing... that... would've explained why... he... felt so...

His world of black somehow got darker as he faded into nothingness.

...o0o...

"Lieutenant Colonel, how's your new pet, if I may ask?"

"Being a bit disobedient sir, but I _will_ have him trained well enough soon."

"I see, if the pup won't behave, try to avoid giving him any treats. Make him beg for it."

"Of course, Brigadier General, sir. I believe that may work."

"If all goes according to plan, we will have Amestris itself under our thumb, _Ollivander_."

"I greatly look forward to it, _Yeager_."

...o0o...

Ed felt like he was going to die.

Okay, that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but he still felt like trampled horse shit.

He hadn't eaten anything at all for days. He assumed it was days, it felt like it... could've been longer, or less. He didn't think starving would hurt that much, it felt like his stomach was caving in on itself, trying to eat him alive from the inside out. After only a few days... one would've thought this feeling would start occurring after a week or so. Apparently not in his case.

Ed coughed weakly, glaring at absolutely nothing. _Damn it Mustang, hurry up before I die of starvation here!_

 _Then again, they may not be coming._

Ed froze, surprised at that thought. Where the hell did that come from?!

 _They could've just left you to die._

 _Don't think like that!_

 _It's likely been a month, at most, if they haven't found you already, then it's obvious they don't ca-_

 _Shut up!_

Ed growled in frustration, shaking his head in disbelief at his own thoughts.

 _Shut up... me... they're coming, it's just going to take a while..._

 _But why? Why should they?_

 _Because-_

 _They'd be better off without you._

The boy gulped at that thought. It hurt to think about.

 _If you never existed, then maybe Al wouldn't be suffering._

 _If you never existed, perhaps Mustang would already be higher in the ranks._

 _If you never existed, dad would've stayed and Mom would still be alive. Al could be living a happy, normal life if you just never existed._

 _... yeah, it's true..._

"THAT I'M GOING INSANE! WHAT THE HELL?!" Ed practically shouted, yelling in agitation as he shook those thoughts out of his head. Where did all that come from?

 _It must be from the starvation_ , he reasoned. _I just need food._

 _But you know it's all true. They're never coming to save a failure like you._

 _You should just die._

...o0o...

One month.

An entire month has passed, and still no sign of Ed. Nothing. It was as if he's vanished without a trace, leaving his own little brother behind.

Roy swore he was going to go insane if they didn't find the kid, and Edward was just that, a kid. That simple fact just made it so much worse.

For all he knew, that _kid_ was dead, rotting in some ditch too far off for any of them to find.

He damn near snapped his pen in half at the thought. _No. He's not dead, and you know it, Mustang._

 _He's not dead, he's not dead, he's not dead..._

So many people kept telling him to give up. They told him that if the military couldn't find the Fullmetal Alchemist in a whole month, then it was likely he was dead.

Roy wanted to burn their mouths closed, that would've kept them from spewing such nonsense.

Roy knew Ed was alive. He knew it, and no matter what others said, he would keep hoping. The team sort of understood what he meant, Hawkeye described it as a sort of "gut feeling". Maes claimed it was "Parental Instincts".

Roy didn't even bother to deny that.

He eventually just put down his pen in favor of glaring at a spot on the wall. _He's not dead, he's not dead, he's not dead..._

"Colonel Mustang, sir."

 _He's not dead, he's not dead, he's not dead..._

"Sir..."

 _He's not dead, he's not dead, he's not dead..._

"Colonel!"

 _HE'S NOT DEAD DAMN IT!_

Roy snapped his head up, sending his glare at Hawkeye. She frowned in disapproval, before dropping off another stack of paperwork onto his desk, adding to the piles among piles of paperwork. At least a week's worth of all-nighters... "These are due by Tuesday, sir."

Roy sighed, shaking his head. _Get rid of the paperwork Mustang, then you can go find the kid._

He proceeded to pick up his pen once more, and continued signing the paperwork. That is, until he saw the one paper he never hoped to see.

...o0o...

"They aren't coming for you."

At first, Ed thought that was that annoying inner voice again. But it wasn't, he was surprised to hear Ollivander saying it instead of himself. He looked up in Ollivander's general direction, managing to croak out, "Wha... do ya mean... by th-that?"

"It makes sense, really," _what_...? "After a whole month of being MIA, it was bound to happen. With no sign of you anywhere, it's obvious they assumed..."

Ed heard Ollivander kneel down in front of him, and what he said next made chills run down his spine.

" _The Fullmetal Alchemist is dead."_

...o0o...

 **A/N: Yayyyy... happy ending, I'm stopping the story there... I'm kidding, I said I wanna go until at least 10 chapters! Short chapter this time, sorry... at least it seems short to me, it could be about the same length as the other chapters but whatevs, I'm writing all this in Notes on my iPad so I don't have a word count.**

 **Please review, reviews are my fuel for motivation now that my writing spree is fizzling out. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

"The Fullmetal Alchemist is dead."

Five words. Just five words were able to make Ed's stomach drop.

Dead? The Fullmetal Alchemist is dead? But he was still there!

 _It's been a month._

 _A full month, and they still couldn't find him. So they..._

 _Just gave up?_

 _They don't care about you._

 _You're not the Fullmetal Alchemist, you're just Edward Elric, a weak, pathetic little 13 year old boy._

He's not the Fullmetal Alchemist, he died a while ago. They wanted Fullmetal, not Ed.

 _They aren't coming for you._

"It's quite amusing," Ollivander continued, and Ed could literally feel the man grinning at him, "those military dogs finally decided to give up searching for their precious little Alchemist, though it didn't take them long."

A lump formed in Ed's throat, as he tried to wrap his mind around it. _They aren't coming the Fullmetal Alchemist is dead not here not gonna help dead gone-_

 _You didn't come to help, Roy..._

...o0o...

"What do you mean, _dead_?! We haven't found a body to confirm it!"

"Stand down, Colonel, as I have said before, the military cannot spare anymore resources to find one Alchemist. It's been a month, it's safe to assume-"

"That he's dead? The _issue_ here is that we haven't searched in the right places-"

"Colonel Mustang!" Brigadier General Yeager barked, agitation seeping into his tone. Mustang froze, immediately shutting up.

Forcing himself to take a deep breath to calm down a little, Yeager continued, "While we do wish to find Fullmetal as soon as possible, seeing as he is a valuable State Alchemist, we do not have the supplies, nor the time, to keep searching. We're having to put him down as Presumed Dead."

Roy stared at Yeager in disbelief. _This couldn't be happening, no no no... Edward isn't dead_. He knew that. Reluctantly, Roy nodded, "Yes sir..."

The Brigadier General frowned at Mustang, eyeing him carefully. "Alright, would that be all, Colonel?"

"No sir."

"Dismissed, Colonel."

Giving the man a sharp salute, Mustang swiftly made his way out of the office, into the hallway where Hawkeye was waiting.

The blond woman gave him a questioning look, to which Mustang shook his head in response. Her eyes narrowed a bit as she pursed her lips. Roy quirked an eyebrow at her, letting a hint of a smirk take over. She blinked in slight surprise,before letting her stoic mask take ahold again as she nodded.

The message was clear: _If the military won't find our Ed, then we will._

...o0o...

"It seems a stray is quite upset with the sudden development, I'll have to keep an eye on him."

"Is that so? Which one Is it?"

"I believe his name's Blackie."

"Ah, I see. Creative name."

"Shut up, I'm not the one who named him. How's things going with the pup?"

"Better, admittedly. The little thing's been injured though, I may have to take him to a vet soon."

"Do as needed, we don't need him dying on us."

"Yes sir."

...o0o...

Ed couldn't even think straight anymore, his head pounded, it felt his his heart decided to relocate to somewhere in his throat, and he was pretty sure that broken rib he got a while ago was going to think his lung would be a good resting place.

It all hurt. It burned, but was also numb from the cold... did that make any sense? He couldn't move his arm or leg. It was almost like he was missing all four limbs at this point... maybe it wouldn't hurt as bad if he did.

They're not coming.

Those words still echoed in his mind. It really hurt worse than the injuries did. They didn't care. They weren't coming for him.

I'm all alone...

Yeah. It hurt a lot.

Ed choked slightly on the lump in his throat, feeling his unseeing eyes water a bit.

 _No... don't cry, you can't believe what he says!_

But a month...

An entire month...

 _No matter what I want to believe, I have to face the facts, Mustang isn't coming._

 _I'm going to die here, alone..._

 _Al must be worried... or not..._

 _All alone._

 _Nobody cares._

He failed to hold back a choked sob, letting his tears freely escape his eyes from beneath the blindfold.

 _Help..._

It's not like it mattered anyway, they all thought he was dead, there's no point to it anymore.

 _I'm going to die._

Al would be fine without him, it was his fault he ended up in that body. Al was smart, he'd be able to get by without him.

 _Die._

Mustang hated him anyway... The team thought he was annoying...

 _Die._

He took time out of Hughes's schedule, time he could've spent with his family...

 _Die._

They'd all be better off if I just died.

 _Dead._

...o0o...

When he first heard the sound, he thought he must've been imagining it. But when he heard it again, a little louder, it filled him with a sense of... how to describe it... joy. Yes, yes, joy. It was a wonderful sound.

A painful, betrayed sob. _The little pup expected help, hm? How cute_. Kevin smirked as he sat near the open trapdoor, listening to those lovely noises. It was exciting really, he finally managed to break down the kid's walls. He managed to break _him_.

 _Finally_...

After a few minutes of listening to the quiet, subdued crying, Ollivander reluctantly closed the trapdoor. He wanted to keep listening, but he couldn't. He had a quick job to do, to keep the pup alive.

 _It seems we'll be having a little guest..._

...o0o...

To say Mina was scared would be a gross understatement, no, she was _terrified_.

He had come out of nowhere, grabbing her as she left the hospital to go home. The nurse had been quickly dragged away, and to what she assumed was the man's house.

She didn't know his name, all she knew was that he had basically kidnapped her, and "had a job" for her to do.

Mina Barton was a new employee at that hospital, and was barely experienced in her work, only being 21 years old. Her light brown hair was disheveled, falling from the ponytail she usually kept it in, and her dark blue eyes widened in horror and she was pushed through the house.

 _What's he going to do...?_

 _Is he going to...?!_

She wanted to leave, she wanted to kick him in sac and run. But she couldn't, not with a gun pressed firmly against the back of her head.

The man huffed, noticing her nervous leading her down the hallway. She walked stiffly, eyes darting around the house anxiously.

"Don't worry, girl," he growled, startling Mina. "I ain't gonna try anything, I just need you to work on my little pet."

 _Pet_? Mina was confused a bit at that, not knowing what he meant. _I'm not a vet... I'm a nurse_.

They made it to a bedroom, which had all the curtains drawn, keeping the sunlight from entering, along with prying eyes.

The man locked the door behind them, and quickly moved over to a spot on the floor, to the right of the bed. He swiftly drew a transmutation the floor, and activating it, opened up a trapdoor.

Mina gulped nervously as she was led down the ladder. The basement was dark and cold, the only light, and source of warmth was the fireplace settled farther up the wall next to the ladder. There was a table littered with tools a mechanic would use, along with what looked like knives, syringes, water bottles... was that a whip?! There was a hose laying down near the table, and it seemed to still be dripping with water.

Though what Mina saw next nearly made her faint.

Over on the wall opposite of the fireplace, a good twelve feet's distance, was what looked like a _child_.

 _A freaking kid! Was this the 'pet' this man was talking about_?!

The fireplace cast a warm orange glow on the kid, making him seem less pale than he probably was. From what Mina could see, this kid was rather small, looking to be about 10 years old or so. He had pretty long, golden-blond hair, that was handing loosely around his shoulders, obscuring his face. His clothes, a black tank top and leather pants, were practically rags, and she could clearly see from the way they hung off his frame that he was WAY too skinny to be healthy.

She was surprised that's what first caught her attention, since what she saw next was... she couldn't even describe it.

His right arm and left leg were missing, and she could see metal glinting in the light. There were wires tangled up and hanging out of the Automail ports, and she may not have been an Automail mechanic but she's pretty sure they aren't supposed to do that.

His left arm was wrenched above his head, three long nails pinning his arm to the wall, and his right leg laid limply in front of him. There was washed out blood smearing the wall and floor, and Mina couldn't tell if he was breathing or not.

He looked... bad, to put it lightly.

The man shoved her forward towards the kid, pushing a bag into her arms. "Make sure the pup doesn't die, we need him alive."

Mina noticed the kid flinch at the voice, making anger boil inside her. _This maniac... he tortured a kid? A kid who wasn't even a teenager yet? Who was this 'we'? There was someone else involved..._

"Hey, get to work already!"

She jumped a little at the command, but immediately dropped to her knees in front of the kid. Up close, she noticed there was a blindfold tied tightly around his head, and he saw the burns on his arm, which looked like skin had been ripped off of them. They seemed to have stopped bleeding, thankfully, but they still looked bad.

"Hey," she whispered as gently as she could. She wasn't one to do well with kids, she never was. Much less traumatized kids... she saw him quicken his breathing a little, trying to scoot away from her, which must've been hard with no functioning limbs.

"Hydrogen, helium, lithium, beryllium..."

 _What_..? Mina noticed the boy muttering, what sounded like...

"...boron, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, fluorine..."

 _Is he reciting the periodic table_...? She watched in stunned silence as he kept muttering quietly to himself, reciting what was indeed, the periodic table. Kinda weird for a kid his age to know...

His voice was rough and scratchy, quiet and fearful. She didn't like that kind of sound coming from a kid.

"Hey, I'm going to try helping you," she tried again, but he flinched away, quickening his words.

"...cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, gallium, germanium, arsenic..."

"I'm not going to hurt you, kid."

"...selenium, bromine, krypton, rubidium, strontium, yttrium, zirconium, niobium-"

"Hey!" She put a hand on his right shoulder as gently as she could, and he immediately froze. She lowered her voice a bit, taking a quick glance back at that man who brought her here. He didn't seem to be paying much attention, instead choosing to twirl a knife around in his hand lazily as he watched the fire. She turned back to the kid, "I'm a nurse, I'm here to try and fix you up."

The boy paused, pursing his lips, "H-how can... can I kn-know I ca-an trust y...ou?" He croaked, distrust clear in his tone.

She didn't quite know herself, if she was honest. "I... can't really give you a reason," she said carefully, watching for a reaction. He frowned a bit, waiting for her to continue. "I just know this... monster needed me to help you do you don't die, from what I can see, you're hurt pretty badly."

"Y-yeah, no-no shit, Sher...lock." _Where on earth did this kid learn such fowl language?_! She decided against scolding him for it, one could hardly blame him given the situation. The boy immediately snapped his mouth shut, tensing up a little, as if expecting something.

 _Like getting hit._

Mina squeezed her hand a little, trying to show him that she meant no harm. It seemed to work a bit, as he loosened up a little bit. "So is it alright with you if I take a look?"

Reluctantly, he nodded. "Yeah..."

She opened up the bag the man had given her, finding several bandages, pain relievers, and all sorts of random things he must've grabbed in a hurry. It was hardly ideal resources for this, but it would do.

She got to work, doing her best to set the broken rib, which had earned her a pained hiss. She bandaged up his head, which was bleeding a bit, and easily cleaned up some cuts that seemed to have gotten infected. She continued on, until she got to his arm.

It was... not... pretty.

The nails each had around an inch worth in diameter, and were embedded into the boy's arm, and the wall he was sitting up against. There was dried blood caking the surrounding areas, and she saw what looked like a light yellow liquid oozing out from each wound, with the skin looking like a dark, ugly purple.

They're infected.

She straightened a bit, saying in a louder voice so that man could hear her, "I'm going to have to take the nails out if I am to properly treat his arm." She glanced back at the man, waiting for him to respond.

He merely glanced back at her, raising an eyebrow. He looked at the kid for a brief moment, then back at Mina. "Eh, go ahead, it's not like he can move it anyway."

Thus began the excruciating process of removing the nails.

...o0o...

Oh _Truth_ it hurt, it hurt worse than having his arm nailed to the wall in the first place.

Ed knew this nurse lady was trying to be gentle, but damn, it felt like she was ripping out his bones and muscles along with the nails.

One by one, they were removed. Slowly. Agonizingly.

It tore at his arm, ripping bits of skin off with it, holy shit... his arm had apparently tried healing around the nail, according to the nurse lady.

She was talking the whole time, trying to keep him calm. She had identified herself to be a 21 year old nurse by the name of Mina Barton.

Mina, huh?

In return, he told her his name was Edward Elric. She was surprised to hear he was thirteen, and not ten like she had thought, much to his annoyance. He isn't short, damn it!

But in a way, he was relived. Happy to be able to talk to someone other than Ollivander, who, much to Ed's amusement, had been dubbed "Sir Garbage" by Mina.

He liked her, she was funny, in a strange way.

Weird... he hadn't been happy like this in... a while... Ed had almost forgotten what it was like. Huh.

Finally, the last nail was pulled out, and Ed immediately let his arm drop, not caring the least in how hard it hit the ground. It relieved the stressful ache in his shoulder, and that's all that mattered to him at the moment. Mina was quick to take his bloodied arm and start tending to it, disinfecting the wounds as he sat there quietly, trying not to cry from the stinging and flares of pain.

This was so... strange to him, to be honest, after a month of just pain and hurt and torture, he was experiencing something new... it was nice.

But then he'd have that torn away as well.

Mina finished bandaging his arm, and went to look at his leg. She carefully picked it up and- _wow, okay, that hurt, ow._

Ed just barely managed to catch his yelp as Mina moved the leg, and he felt fiery pain burst throughout s the leg he couldn't move.

"He cut the ligaments," Mina said quietly, and he swore he could hear her frowning. "How long ago?"

 _Huh_? "I don't know... I... think about two or three days ago, I think..." Ed muttered, trying to remember. Yeah... about 48 - 72 hours ago sounded right.

Mina paused, before saying in a louder voice, "He's going to have to have surgery as soon as possible if he ever hopes to walk again," Ed assumed she was talking to 'Sir Garbage'.

"Well, little lady," he replied, and that voice sent chills up Ed's spine, "I don't plan on having him walk away any time soon anyway."

Ed could hear the hidden message right away; _I am never letting him go._

Mina inhaled sharply, tensing up a bit as she put down his leg. The two talked a little, Ed drowning then out a little in favor of thinking.

Mina's nice... I hope she gets to stay, I need someone else to talk to. Though then again, I don't want her to be stuck with that creep...

However any thought of talking with Mina ever again was quite literally shot to pieces as a gunshot rang out, and Ed felt something warm and mushy splatter all over the place, including on him.

 _That mushy stuff was... oh Truth no..._

Ed screamed.

...o0o...

 **A/N: Yay for killing off OCs! RIP Mina Barton. You were fun to write while you lasted. But yeah, sorry about all the OC action, Papa Roy is coming soon, I can promise you that! Also, sorry if this chapter is crappy, it's like 2 AM as I'm writing this. I dunno but this chapter seems longer than the last, yayyy... I should be sleeping ugh... and no, I have absolutely no understanding of the human body nor do I know how these injuries would work, it's all merely guesswork like 98% of the time. Okay, so please review, they give me something to look forward to in the day. Thanks for reading!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Colonel Mustang, sir," Roy looked up from his paperwork, frowning a bit as Hawkeye approached his with yet another stack of paperwork.

 _Just how many trees are they butchering just to make me miserable?!_

He didn't respond, merely watching her curiously. She nodded towards the papers, narrowing her eyes.

"These are due on the sixth," Mustang arched an eyebrow, instantly catching on to her real message.

 _Meet me at 6 o'clock._

"I see, the usual, then?"

 _Madame Christmas's place?_

"Yes sir, although I must inform you that some others here are due soon as well."

 _The team is coming along._

"Of course, I wouldn't forget."

 _Definitely, we're in this together._

Mustang narrowed his eyes slightly, before returning to his paperwork. It seems they had a little date this evening.

...o0o...

"So Hawkeye, you said you found something?" Havoc questioned, leaning back in his seat.

Everyone on the team, except Edward for obvious reasons, and Al since he was underage, was at the bar.

Riza held up some papers, narrowing her eyes. "Correct, have any of you heard about that nurse that went missing yesterday?" Mustang, along with Falman nodded. The others looked a bit lost, but urged her to continue anyway. "Well her body was found earlier today, at exactly 1032 hours." Riza frowned at her own words, passing the papers around so everyone could read the report. "Mina Barton, age 21, nurse. She had been reported missing yesterday when she didn't return home from work. Her body was found in an alleyway two miles west from Eastern HQ this morning. Bullet straight to the skull, blew off a part of her head."

Fuery looked horrified at that, Havoc looked disgusted, Breda was looking sick, and Falman seemed to look indifferent, but the team had noticed the gleam in his eyes that spoke a different story.

Mustang, however, was confused as to how this related to Ed at all. He furrowed his eyebrows, frowning a bit as he thought. Hawkeye seemed to notice, as she continued, "The reason I am telling you this is because I saw a report from a woman who said she heard a gunshot in the middle of the night."

"How exactly can you tell these are connected?" Mustang questioned, eyeing the reports in his hands. A simple gunshot and a corpse of a nurse...?

"Because the woman lived only about 12 miles from where the corpse was found," Hawkeye answered easily, "it couldn't have been a Hunter, she lived in an area where there were no hunting grounds, and she also claimed she h-heard..." Hawkeye paused, taking a deep breath and pursing her lips. "A... scream, after the gunshot went off."

Everyone stared at her, their expressions mixes of confusion, and horror.

"We'll look into this tomorrow," Mustang said immediately, standing up. "If there is a possibility that was Fullmetal, we will take it."

The team all nodded in agreement. After all, their little family needed a sunshine-haired midget to complete it.

...o0o...

Mustang had a feeling this was a long shot. It was possible this woman didn't hear right, but if there was even the slimmest of chances that scream belonged to Fullmetal...

 _He was going to pounce on it._

He couldn't afford to let any opportunity slip by, he couldn't let his youngest subordinate... no, not subordinate, Fullmetal was _dead_ according to the military. No, he couldn't let _his kid_ be stuck in a hellhole for much longer.

Wait... 'his'. Not 'a'. Not 'Edward'.

 _Heh, I must be going crazy_ , Mustang thought humorlessly, as he tugged off his military jacket, tossing it carelessly onto his couch as he walked down the hall to his room. Whatever, it's getting late anyway.

 _Don't worry Ed, we're coming for you._

...o0o...

Al was going to find his brother. He was tired of sitting by letting the military try, he needed his older brother.

When they declared Ed to be dead, that only strengthened Al's determination. So he spent the next week running around East City, asking questions and searching every corner of the area. Or at least, the legal places. He couldn't just bust into random people's houses after all.

But he was getting frustrated. He was mentally exhausted, and he couldn't remember the last time he oiled his joints, he could hear the armor creaking and rattling every time he moved.

He really wanted to go back to his body, but more than that, he wanted to get Ed's arm and leg back.

How could he help his older brother, the one who's done so damn much for him, if he couldn't even find him?

Pathetic. Just pathetic.

He was _already_ twelve, he should've been able to handle this.

He was already twelve...

He's... _only twelve_... and it hurt.

It hurt to be alone, in that empty tin can of a body. It hurt. He wanted his brother back more than anything else, was that too much to ask? A full month and a week of solitude was driving him insane.

" _I'll be back soon Al," his brother had said excitedly, a cheerful gleam in his golden eyes, "I'll meet you at the library in about an hour!"_

 _He never came back._

He never came back like he said he would, and now he was _gone._

Al wasn't sure how much longer he could take it... he needed to talk to someone, someone who wasn't military personnel. Someone he trusted. Someone who should've known about the situation long ago when it all started.

 _He needed to tell her._

...o0o...

"Hey Winry? I have to tell you something..."

"Al? If you're callin'... did Ed break his Automail again? That idiot..."

"No, we... don't know where he is."

"... what...?"

"He's missing, Winry... We haven't seen him for over a month..."

Winry dropped the phone.

...o0o...

" _Tell me you damn brat!"_

Ed felt Ollivander roughly grab his chin, jerking his head up and nearly snapping his neck. Something cold and sharp was pressed up against his exposed throat, threatening to cut into it. "Tell me the secrets to Flame Alchemy, or I won't hesitate to kill you," the man growled, and Ed felt something warm trickle down his neck and a sharp sting exploded in his neck.

Ed huffed, experimentally tugging at the rope that now bound his sore wrist to the wall behind him, thankfully not above his head, but instead to a spot over to his left.

His only results were sharp flares of pain shooting up his arm, and he ultimately decided against trying that again. _Yup okay ow let's not do that again..._

"No, you w-wouldn't..." he coughed, learning as far away from the blade as he could. He wouldn't dare even try breathing too much in fear he may accidebtly slit his own throat. "Y-you still ne-ed that information... you can't kill me-"

Ollivander barked a laugh at him, making the boy freeze up as the blade pressed deeper against his throat. "You think you're so important hm?" He leaned down, hissing venomously in his ear, "You don't think after a while, we'd go ahead and try extracting the information we need from someone else?"

Edward tensed up at that. _They'd drag someone else into this...? No...!_

"We could perhaps, have a little fun with that lovely Lieutenant," Ollivander purred, and Ed flinched slightly at feeling his breath directly in his ear. "What was her name...? Hawkeye, wasn't it? Or perhaps even the Colonel himself-"

"Y-you keep your dirty ha-ands off of them you _s-son of a bi-itch_." Ed snapped hoarsely, growling at him, almost like a dog... A dog that's even shoved a bit too far over the edge.

The knife dug deeper into his neck as response.

"Then I suggest you tell me, you little bastard," Ollivander snarled, smirking at the sight of the boy writhing silently as he slowly cut at his throat. It was dangerous, yes, he could accidentally kill him, yes. But despite what he said, the kid was important. He just needed to... motivate him into speaking.

They went through all this trouble to capture him, no way were they throwing him away quite yet.

 _But they were running out of time._

"Either tell me now, or I go and give you and dear ol' _Mama_ and _Papa_ a lovely reunion. I'm sure the _lieutenant'd_ know, after all, she's known the Flame for years." He said, letting her rank roll off his tongue like honey. It'd be fun it have a woman _and_ a child there at the same time, like that nurse. It was a shame he had to kill her...

Ed pursed his dry lips, but didn't say anything. Kevin swore he could see him glaring at him from beneath the blindfold.

"I see how it is then."

He let go of the kid's chin, taking the knife away and letting blood flow freely down his neck. Nothing too serious, the wound was rather shallow and wasn't life-threatening. He moved over to his table of goodies, and picked up a little thing the Brigadier General was generous enough to give him.

A little toy he's been _dying_ to use.

"So tell me, Fullmetal, how does Flame Alchemy work?" He asked again, eyeing the kid carefully.

Ed was muttering something, and it most certainly wasn't the secrets the Flame Alchemy, more like something that would've made veteran sailors blush.

Ollivander practically ripped Ed out of his restraints, shoving him to the ground with a startled yell. Ed immediately tried to get up, tried removing the blindfold, tried anything to give him a chance of escaping that hell, but Ollivander seemed to have other plans.

 _Down came the whip._

...o0o...

He could feel his skin tearing, being forcibly ripped off his bare back. Holy shit it burned. He may have been bandaged up by Mina, but his whole body still hurt. This made it so much worse. Each whip sent sharp flares of pain through his body, agitating the other burns and cuts and bruises and whole series of other things.

 _And he was stuck there._

 _Stuck in that hell with no way out._

 _After all, who in their right mind would keep searching for someone who's dead? They aren't coming._

...o0o...

"Colonel Mustang, right?" Roy looked up from his questionable looking lunch at a man who seemed a bit older than him, with dark blue eyes and graying hair, who seemed to be giving him a concerned look.

Mustang blinked, noticing the rank of Lieutenant Colonel stare back at him from the man's uniform. "Yes, that would be me," he said carefully, watching the man shift from foot to foot awkwardly.

"Erm, sir I head about the Fullmetal Alchemist, and-"

"Don't," Mustang said immediately, turning away from him. He stared down at the brown mush known as the mystery meat he got every Wednesday. It was at least a bit better than whatever it was they put into the 'beef' soup.

The Lieutenant Colonel blinked seeming to take the hint. "O-okay sir, I just wanted to see if you were fine-"

"I'm alright," Mustang snapped, before shoveling the mystery meat down his throat.

"O-okay..."

Yes, he's perfectly fine. After all, _there was a chance he'd get to see Ed again that very day after work._

...o0o...

"Blackie seems a bit snappish, sir."

"I see, he must be very upset about his pup to be acting in such away around a Trainer like you. Any luck with the pup?"

"As soon as I brought up the idea of a little family reunion, he seemed to have calmed down considerably."

"Is that so? Any information as of yet?"

"On what we want, unfortunately no, but he seems to be slowly accepting out help."

"Things are going well then, I hope to hear more of your progress, Ollivander."

"Oh you will Yeager, you will."

...o0o...

 **A/N: I'm going to admit I struggled with this chapter, that's why it came out later than the previous 3ish chapters. Writing spree's flickering off, aghhhh. Though the fact I never plotted out any of this crap and am just winging it hoping it works out well, may have something to do with it. Sorry if this one seems crappy, it's like 2:30 AM right now... so yay, please review, they're the reason I'm still writing.**


	7. Chapter 7

"Lieutenant Colonel, it seems someone has informed us of some loud barking yesterday. That wouldn't happen to have anything to do with that dog you had over, would it?"

"What? It must've been Baker, doesn't know when to stop yappin'."

"Hm, it seems Blackie and his little crew must've heard and are coming over."

"Damn it, I don't have any time to deal with them!"

"I'm afraid your training session must be cut short."

"Wh-what? But sir-"

"Don't worry about a thing, let them have their reunion. We can always just have one of the others substitute is the pup is not up to more later, after all."

"... _yes sir_."

...o0o...

Mustang crossed his arms, holding back a frustrated growl as the old woman drawled on and on. She was describing what had happened in the entire day in a dramatic and very animated way, but she wouldn't _shut the hell up and get to the point!_

Though he couldn't exactly tell her to considering she wouldn't let any of the equally frustrated soldiers interrupt her.

"And that horrifyin' scream, I _swear_ , i'nearly gave poor Betty a heart'tack!" She exclaimed, waving her hands around in the air as she gave them an exaggerated look of horror. "My poor little girl's going to have nightmares for at least a month because of this! Whatever happened must have-"

" _Ma'am_!" Hawkeye snarled, her hands twitching agitatedly by her hips, itching to just grab her gun and shoot her. "That's _quite enough_ , we only wish to know which house you heard the... _gunshot_ originate from." _Scream_ , was left out, but it still lingered in their minds, practically taunting the soldiers. They _really_ didn't need to hear more about how _their Ed_ could've possibly been tor... _that._

The old lady snapped her mouth closed, giving the Lieutenant a shocked look. "Hmph, rude one, aren'cha? Yer ma shoulda taught you some manners young lady-"

" _Mrs. Baker_!" Mustang shot, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Shut the _hell_ up, and _tell us_ before I _burn you to a crisp_." He glanced over at Hawkeye, who had momentarily froze on the spot. Her mother _couldn't_ have taught her manners...

Mrs. Baker tilted her chin up proudly, ruffled a bit at the fact her display was cut off. "It's was coming from Mr Ollivander's place," she huffed, "the cream colored one two houses to the left of my own." She turned on her heel, muttering something about "young ones these days, no manners whatsoever..."

Roy punched the tree he was leaning on.

...o0o...

The house itself wasn't much. It was a single story house with an attic from the looks of it, with a nicely mowed yard and had a clean, simple look to it.

But if his suspicions were right, it wasn't quite a simple as it looked.

Wfith Hawkeye, Havoc, Breda, Fuery, and Falman trailing behind him, Mustang briskly strode up to the front door, giving it a sharp knock.

Nothing happened.

Frowning a little, he knocked again, but received no response.

"Ahhh, don't tell me the guy's not home!" Havoc moaned, rubbing the back of his neck tiredly.

Falman nodded over to where a car was parked in front of the house, "No, he's here."

Roy growled, knocking a little harder. After a minute or so of silence, he backed up slightly, raised a leg, and _kicked the door down._

Before Hawkeye or anyone else could stop him, Mustang was already marching into the place, calling out in frustration.

"Sir-" Hawkeye started, but use as quickly silenced herself. There really was no point in stopping him now, he kicked down the damned door!

Mustang sent a look back at Falman, Breda, and Fuery, "You three, stay outside just in case Ollivander makes a run for it. Havoc, Hawkeye, you two help search the inside."

They instantly split up, searching throughout the house for any sign of life.

Roy slipped into what he assumed was the guest bedroom, looking in the closets, under the bed, everywhere he could.

After about ten minutes of fruitless searching, he scowled, gritting his teeth. "Damn it..."

"Hey Boss, I think I found something!" Havoc! Roy perked up at the sound of the Second Lieutenant's voice, and instantly ran out to meet him. He heard footsteps following behind, and he knew without having to look that it was Hawkeye.

She had heard Havoc as well.

They entered the master bedroom where Havoc was, and they spotted him kneeling next to the bed, running a hand along the floor. He looked up, slightly tense at the sound of them approaching, but just as quickly relaxed. "Hey, check this out..."

Mustang walked over to his subordinate, and kneeled down next to him, with Hawkeye standing behind them to see what it was.

 _Transmutation marks._

There were rough transmutation marks decorating the floor in this particular spot, almost like someone was sealing something shut.

 _Like a trapdoor, perhaps?_

Mustang knocked against the wooden floor experimentally, listening carefully as a rather hollow sound met his ears.

Yup, definitely a trapdoor.

He swiftly reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of chalk, and drew a quick and simple transmutation circle. Despite what everyone thinks, he _does_ in fact know more than just Flame Alchemy.

He hurriedly pressed a gloved palm to the circle, and it lit up with alchemical light. In a flash, the look peeled away, revealing a ladder leading down into a very dark, and cold basement.

What they heard make them freeze; a bloodcurdling scream assaulted their eardrums, practically rocking the house.

 _Oh dear Truth they knew that voice._

Havoc instantly flinched away from the hole, cringing at that awful noise. It was much higher pitched that what they were used to, laced with pain and... was that fear?

No, it couldn't be... not Ed.

But the voice was so familiar, it had to be, no matter how much they didn't want it to.

Mustang immediately jumped down the hole, not even bothering with the ladder. He landed semi-gracefully, nearly tumbling over.

His black eyes gleamed dangerously in the dim light of the fireplace, although what he saw nearly made him blow up the entire house.

"Damn it you little bastard, how the hell did you do that?!"

Their suspect, Kevin Ollivander was covered in burns, faint traces of scorch marks littering the ground and several things, including what looked like wrenches and screwdrivers, scattered about, having been blown away and knocked down from what looked like an explosion.

But...

Edward looked like death; too pale, too small, too... weak... Edward and weak. They shouldn't be in the same sentence, unless there was a 'isn't' between them.

The kid himself was situated on the floor, shoved up against the wall, with Ollivander's hands wrapped tightly around his throat. He was barely moving...

 _Is he even breathing anymore?_

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Roy raised a hand...

And _snapped._

...o0o...

Kevin thought he could suck the information out of the brat before Mustang came. He really did. After everything he out the pup through, he felt he could get the information in time. Just before he made his escape...

How stupid.

He felt a wave of heat crash down on him, pulling him away from the pup.

Fire.

Burns.

It _burned._

Kevin let out a shrill shriek, reaching up to claw at his eyes. The flames licked at his hands, but he didn't care- his eyes were practically boiling, ready to explode in his skull.

He was _blind._

He couldn't _see._

He barely registered the shouts of "Sir! Stop! Don't kill him!" And "I'll burn that son of a bitch to _hell_!"

Two hands roughly grabbed his own, pulling his wrists behind his back where the handcuffs clicked on nicely.

He really was a fool for thinking he'd be able to get the information on time. But at least he got to hear some lovely, mesmerizing screams.

 _Even if they were his own._

...o0o...

Roy practically pounced on Ed, tearing off the blindfold and instantly checking to see if he was breathing.

 _Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale._

He was breathing, thank Truth. Shallow, shaky, quiet, and erratic, but still breathing.

Inhale.

Roy quickly looked him over, taking note of the bandages. Someone must've tried helping him...

 _The nurse._

 _She was the one who helped him._

Exhale.

His back was practically torn to shreds, blood still dripping from the wounds. Must've gotten those much more recently, perhaps even today.

Inhale.

Roy gripped the unconscious kid's shoulders tightly, his hands shaking a little.

Exhale.

He's alive.

Edward is _alive._

Roy gently wrapped his arms around him, pulling Ed into a hug. He didn't care what the others thought, all that mattered was that he was alive. Living, breathing, and not dead.

"Sir...!"

He looked back over at Havoc, who seemed to be staring at something behind Ed. Roy glanced over to where the second lieutenant was looking, and froze.

A transmutation circle was scratched into the wall.

Or more specifically, a fire alchemy transmutation circle.

It was barely noticeable among the dirt and blood that caked the wall, but it as there.

" _Damn it you little bastard, how the hell did you do that?!"_

The burn marks... the messy room, the scorch marks on Ollivander...

Ed had used Flame Alchemy.

This freaking, half-dead thirteen year old kid and used Flame Alchemy. The very thing Roy had told him to not use... And it had saved him. It gave them enough time for Mustang and the others to arrive.

Who knows what could've happened if Ed hadn't done it.

Roy buried his face into the boy's hair, tightening his grip on him. "I'm so proud of you Ed..."

...o0o...

Jameson Yeager was pissed, to say the least.

As a Brigadier General at 52, he thought he'd have a good chance at becoming Fuhrer. After all, he was smart, cunning, and quite capable of running a country.

The only things standing in his way were the other generals... and that damn Mustang.

Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist.

Yeager had to admit, he was mesmerized by the Colonel's flames. So much power, capable of burning an entire town to the ground. All with a snap of his fingers.

So much potential... wasted.

The man was weak minded. He didn't use that power right, he was too weak. He didn't deserve it.

He should've used it better, should've used it to take control.

But he didn't. It pissed him off, that an idiot like Mustang was given that power.

So if the Colonel wouldn't use it, he would.

He would use it to expand Amestris. To take _control_. Amestris would stand strong under his rule.

But that fool Ollivander had thrown a wrench in his plans. He knew the idiot had stayed. He knew that moron had tried getting information from that brat, even after he told him to leave.

It"s just a minor detour, though. Ollivander was disposable, after all.

Jameson smirked, leaning back in his chair, twirling a pen in his hand. They _will_ fear the name of future _Fuhrer Jameson Yeager._

...o0o...

 **A/N: Oh boy a short one! And after like two weeks of waiting! At least I think it's kinda short... As you can tell, my writing spree's stopped, so that means... VERY LONG WAITS FOR UPDATES! YAYYYYY- really, no joke, let's just hope it doesn't take me like six months to update again. Oh yeah, and if you're curious, I drew pictures of Mina, Kevin, and Jameson on my DeviantArt, just put** /art/Burn-It-Away-OCs-741279189 after the https : / /jirachiatsundown (dot) deviantart (dot) com.

 **Not that great I know but hey, at least you have an idea as to what they look like! Although that may not be what you imagined, sorry I'm bad at this stuff haha... so, please drop a review, they're the reason I'm still writing.**


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